Central Michigan wide receiver Titus Davis catches a 13-yard touchdown pass during the second half of an NCAA college football game against Iowa, Saturday, Sept. 22, 2012, in Iowa City, Iowa. Central Michigan won 32-31. Titus Davis along with Courtney Williams and Defarrel Davis have all been suspended for the Little Caesars Bowl for a violation of team policies. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)

Titus Davis was ready to step into the national spotlight while also showing that the first name Titus and Ford Field can go hand in hand again.

Not anymore.

Davis had been a model citizen during his time at Central Michigan and was even among the CMU players who passed out Little Caesars pizzas to those in need last week at the Isabella Community Food Pantry.

But when the focus shifts to football as it will Wednesday night at 7:30 p.m. for the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl, the sophomore Davis along with fellow sophomore wide receiver Courtney Williams and junior wide receiver Defarrel Davis are not going to be among those who are going to be suiting up for the Chippewas.

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The two Davis’ along with Williams were suspended Sunday for a violation of team policy.

In an interview this past week with The Morning Sun, Titus Davis talked about how much he wanted to participate in bowl games during his college career and that factored into his choosing of Central Michigan University.

“Coming to Central Michigan, playing in bowl games and getting back to that bowl culture was a big part of why I wanted to be a Chippewa,” said Davis Tuesday. “It’s great to be part of this team that got us back into the bowl picture and now we just have to go out and win this game.”

The statistics Davis has put up in just 24 games as a Chippewa are pretty staggering at first glance. As a true freshman out of Wheaton-Warrenville South High School in Illinois, he caught 40 passes for 751 yards and eight touchdowns. He went on to top those numbers as a sophomore in 2012, being on the receiving end of 43 passes for 860 yards and another eight touchdowns. That put him at a 20 yards per catch average, while the 16 career touchdowns already has Davis tied for sixth in school history in receiving touchdowns.

Davis’ numbers were also skewed by the fact that he missed most of the Eastern Michigan game with an ankle injury, then saw less snaps than usual versus Miami and Massachussets the next two weeks.

“I think this year he has become a more complete wide receiver,” Central Michigan head coach Dan Enos said Tuesday. “He has put in a lot of work with wide receivers coach Mose Rison and he has taken that tutelege to change from a very athletic receiver to someone who can run precise routes, get in and out of his breaks, and set things up throughout the game. He’s just a much more mature football player this year. We pretty much played without him the last three weeks of the regular season with him hobbling around on his ankle and we really missed his presence.”

Versus Western Michigan in the game prior to the ankle injury, Davis became the first CMU receiver since Damien Linson in 2005 to have over 200 receiving yards in a game.

“I’d say it was mostly my mental aspect of the game that improved from my freshman year to this year,” Davis said. “Being able to go in and study game film and defenses, it has really helped me become a student of the game and really helped me this year.”

Having had a full month to recover from the sprained ankle, Davis believed he was 100 percent heading into the bowl game.

“I’ve done a lot of rehab work on it and done a good job staying off it when I don’t need to be on it,” Davis said. “I feel great and I’m ready to go. It was frustrating at the end of the season not being myself and having to favor that ankle. I’m just looking forward to playing at full strength again and being myself.”

Unfortunately for the Chippewas, the chance to prove his ankle is healthy is no longer going to transpire.

Davis was part of a solid CMU receiving corps that made life a little easier for senior quarterback Ryan Radcliff, who has thrown for 2,905 yards and 20 touchdowns this year. Radcliff saw noticable improvement from the sophomore Davis from where he was as a freshman.

“I think last year, he just played really young. He still played very well, but he was still a freshman,” said Radcliff. “First of all, just the leadership he brings now among the receivers is huge. Then, just when you look at the preciseness of his routes and his timing it’s there all the time. Last year, it was off here and there. Now I know what to expect from him every play.”

Now Radcliff will have only one of his top three targets on the season available to him in the Little Caesars Bowl, that being senior Cody Wilson (64 catches, 739 yards, two TDs).

Aside from running back Zurlon Tipton, Davis was CMU’s biggest touchdown threat this year. He spoke about why he has such a knack for finding the end zone.

“Even from a young age, I wanted to be a big-play guy,” Davis said. “I wanted all or nothing. It’s carried on into college.”

Titus Davis’ loss will impact Central Michigan the most, but Williams was also a factor offensively as he caught 24 passes for 260 yards and two touchdowns. Defarrel Davis, a junior college transfer, did not catch a pass this year and played sparingly on special teams.